[Avodah] pach hashemen

[Alan Rubin]

R' Eli Turkel wrote:

 > Hence, this quoted verison of megillat taanait does not mention the
 > miracle of the oil.
 > Note that megillat taanait was composed towards the end of bayit sheni
 > and so is the first written word since Tanach and precedes the writing
 > of the Mishna by some 150-200 years

 > In the manuscripts that we have there are various verisons of megillat
 > taanait (or rather the Scolion  which is like a gemara on the Mishna).
 > Even the one that quotes the lighting of the menorah only mentions
< that they found tahor oil and lit it for 8 days. The version we all
 > know appears for the first time in Masechet Shabbat and is not based
 > on megillat taanait or pesikta rabati which are the earlier versions
 > that discuss chanukah (not including non-chazal sources like sefer
 > makabim)

Megillas Taanis might date to the the end of Bayis Sheni but that is 
just a list of dates when we have or do not have taanis or hesped. The 
Hebrew commentary, the Scolium is of a much later date. The story of the 
Pach Shemen, of how many days it took time taken to fix the mizbeach or 
the seven spears is in the Scolium but not in megilas taanis itself. I 
have not been able to find  a definite date for the composition of the 
Scolium and have come across anything from 200 to 700 CE quoted. So I do 
not think it is accurate to claim that the Scolum to Megillas Taanis is 
the earliest non-chazal source that discusses channukah.  The Scolium 
may post-date the Gemara.

I have seen a version of the Scolium which refers to a miracle that a 
jug with sufficient oil for one day only lasted for eight days.

As for pesikta rabati, I believe that was composed in the ninth century 
so it is also not an early source.

That is not to say that there are not problems with the Pach Shemen 
story, but these are primarily from non-Chazal sources, ie Sefer 
Makkabim and Josephus who says that he does not know why channukah is 
called the 'Festival of Lights'. The Scolium provides an alternative 
understanding but does not necessarily come earlier any other chazal source.

Alan Rubin